MacAlly Bookstand for iPad: Short Review and *PICS*

[Fireproof!]

I ordered one from onsale.com cheap price but not available til May. hope that's wrong as mykoljay says they are in stock. hmmm.
I just wanted to order something and finish deciding on a case! I also got a Griffin car and home charger set for a good price. never ordered from them before, at least they had people on phones. sureneeds.com has no # to call.

...snip...

Ha - I feel your pain. Me too. I got the Incase Convertible, and while I like it and it's very functional, I keep looking at the thin cases, reading about likes/dislikes on the Apple case, etc. I don't think I'll be satisfied until I have a sleek/thin case...that also has the stand functionality.

So I finally decided on this and will be glad to stop searching.

 

[Beau10]

It seems like such a small amount of space that I'm chalking it up to the case not being broken in. I highly doubt this will continue to be the case after a month of thorough use. seems to me the materials are fresh and don't have much give yet, they'll become more broken in. if it were a bigger amount of space I might be worried but it's so small I'm sure it'll correct itself.

Consider though he said that about the latch, but not about this. I'm hoping that's what it is, but it could be a production error that will work itself out in the next batch or two.

 

[Crackbone]

Consider though he said that about the latch, but not about this. I'm hoping that's what it is, but it could be a production error that will work itself out in the next batch or two.

I don't consider it that big of a deal considering that I've seen this type of nonsense before and it usually works itself out with some break in time.

 

[Beau10]

I don't consider it that big of a deal considering that I've seen this type of nonsense before and it usually works itself out with some break in time.

I get that.

But as a counter I've worked as an engineer in the medical devices industry for about 15 years now. This is all too common - you have a deadline to hit. You go thru a number of production prototype iterations, the last one you get is almost perfect, but it needs one slight tweak. You can't wait another week so you make a call to do the tweak and go straight to production. When you get the first batch you have a "doh!" moment. Not a show-stopper, but definitely something you send in the correction for the next order.

In this case, maybe the spine was a bit too shallow and caused the case to bind around the screen. So the designer told the factory in China "increase the depth of the spine 3mm". But instead of increasing the overall length of the case (flattened out), they remove some material from the top cover to achieve the goal.

I totally understand everyone's desire to get this ASAP, esp. if you've been going without a stand (very much feel the pain here...). I'm just saying, if you can hold out for a few more days, maybe wait for further impressions. AT LEAST if you're as anal as me

 

[adster]

Hey everyone. I wanted to comment a little further about the edge being exposed issue. Yes, when I mentioned it in my post I wasn't quite sure if it would work itself out or not.

After playing with it for a little while I'm making a judgment call and saying the quarter inch spine will most likely not stretch over time, and that this is one of two things: a bad unit from the factory or a bad first production run. Unfortunately, the only way to tell is when other people start receiving their cases.

I will be getting in contact with MacAlly to point this out to them, but hopefully they are already aware of it. Now, I don't feel this issue is a "deal breaker" as I'm loving the case as it is and the edge is a slight oversight but it would be nice to have the iPad completely covered.

I guess I have to remember that when these cases were designed, they most likely didn't have an actual iPad to test it with, only computer specs and maybe a plastic shell. After all of this, I still feel like this is the best case currently on the market for the iPad.

 

[Braaam]

Great q&a, thanks for that and for making all the pictures. Finally a stylish and functional acase that doesn't conceal the beautiful ipad completely.

 

[Crackbone]

Well, I just received mine. First impressions are good, and my thoughts mirror much of what the OP said.

For those who are a tad anal retentive, i don't have the issue with the case being off by a couple of mm. It fits perfectly.

Later on tonight or tomorrow I'll post some in-depth thoughts, but for now I can tell you it looks to be a winner.

 

[phooi]

Doh! I was waiting for this case but ended up buying the apple case today b/c it was finally available at the apple store... Can you say buyer's remorse??

Actually, while I didn't like the apple case initially, I find that it is growing on me.

Oh why didn't I read my macrumors this morning???!!!!

Congrats on everyone who scored one of these cases. Sounds like a winner for those looking for a convertible case.

 

[kmattoo]

Just got a call from sureneeds.com who said they had run out of the case and apologized. He said they went through 150 orders since Friday.

Now I need to find another place!

 

[HXGuy]

Yep, I got the call just now too...sucks! I need to find another place too.

 

[Beau10]

Crackbone,

Thanks for that confirmation.

I just put in an order at Provantage, they indicate it will be a drop-ship from the manufacturer.

I notice Amazon not only still has it on pre-order, but has raised the price to retail.

 

[Star-fire]

I got mine today and I'm not that impressed, it looks nice and function is nice but it doesn't hold the iPad in that well, the corners just seem to short and just not shaped right, it just doesn't clip in that well. I'll try it a few days and see what happens.

 

[bluehaze013]

That looks like a really nice case, only thing I dont like is the grey color looks a bit ugly :/ does it come in black?

 

[jedolley]

That looks like a really nice case, only thing I dont like is the grey color looks a bit ugly :/ does it come in black?

The macally uk site shows a black model (not out yet), so there is hope if you prefer the black.

 

[email68]

Got the same call.

Told them to cancel my order and email me when the come in. That way I'm free to find it or something else, somewhere else.

-Tim

Just got a call from sureneeds.com who said they had run out of the case and apologized. He said they went through 150 orders since Friday.

Now I need to find another place!

 

[DunnMaui]

provantage

I just ordered mine on provantage.com for 40 shipped. Hope I get it in about two weeks and I'll be a happy camper.

I tried to order this cover at provantage.com . . . suckers tried to rip me off for almost $30 in shipping to Hawaii. UPS 2nd day air which really means 4 days! I'm sticking with my Amazon order and waiting

 

[alansmallen]

I returned my Apple case today and exchanged it temporarily for an Incase gel until my amazon order comes in for this guy

 

[nremondelli]

I have two coming in the mail within the next day or two. Instead of returning one of them I'd be happy to sell one to a forum member. I ordered one and it was backordered and ordered another from eBay. Low and behold they both shipped before I could cancel the Macmall order.

Shoot me an email

nremondelli at yahoo dot com

 

[gigaguy]

Does the OP have a screen or back protector on? Maybe that effects the fit?
I want protectors on mine also. PS - I'd love a black Macally one too.

 

[magicandmystery]

I have two coming in the mail within the next day or two. Instead of returning one of them I'd be happy to sell one to a forum member. I ordered one and it was backordered and ordered another from eBay. Low and behold they both shipped before I could cancel the Macmall order.

Shoot me an email

nremondelli at yahoo dot com

I just shot you an email

 

[TNSF]

I ordered one from nakedcellphone on ebay yesterday and it shipped today. Wasn't cheap, but at least its readily available. But I might have gotten the last one because its no longer listed on their site.

 

[adster]

Does the OP have a screen or back protector on? Maybe that effects the fit?
I want protectors on mine also. PS - I'd love a black Macally one too.

Nope, no screen and/or back protectors on my iPad. It's naked and proud. Also, I too would like to see a black version of this case.

Also, someone mentioned that MacAlly has a black version on their UK website. I couldn't find that. All I was able to find was this:
http://www.macally-europe.com/productpage.php?product=1926

Which is the same color as the US version.

EDIT: I found this pic of the black version on a Chinese site:
http://www.nextway.ch/images/macally_bookstand_ipad.jpg

 

[shapefactor]

macally-europe originally featured a black case in earlier days, but given that it has been recently replaced with that grey color, i doubt macally is producing the black case after all?

i'm looking forward to buy the black color. in any case, what is the cheapest way of getting one of these if i'm in the uk? any ideas?

(oh btw, .ch isn't a chinese website, .cn is. .ch means it comes from switzerland.)

 

[Lukemc]

I've just ordered one of these from Mygearstore.com with fedex shipping to Australia. Hoping it arrives in a week or so, thanks for the review OP. On a separate note anyone here unhappy with their apple case feel like selling it and posting to aus? My wife is screaming for one for her iPad! If so drop me a pm. Cheers and thanks again for the review and the great Pics.

 

[Crackbone]

Okay, i've spent an evening with the case. Here's what I like and don't like.

Likes: The case seems to hold the iPad in place very well, it doesn't shift of move at all.

The case is extremely sturdy in typing and media mode. It does have a little "wobble" but nothing major. It holds the position well.

The case is very well constructed. I can see it loosening up a tad with use, again, nothing major. It appears it's going to hold up well.

Dislikes: As I suspected the strap can get annoying. Best thing to do when using the iPad , tuck the strap.

It's microfiber, so it tends to pick up dust and dirt on occasion. Although, it's much better in this regard than the Apple case.

Oddities : the case if not properly secured with the strap will not fully cover the iPad, as the OP stated. It fully covers the iPad if the strap is properly secured.


All in all, it's a keeper. It's not going back. IMO, it's the best case going for one that allows typing and media modes/stands.